Optimism among meeting industry professionals has reached its highest level in five years, with 85% of respondents saying they are optimistic or very optimistic about the year ahead — up from 74% for 2025, according to the 15th Annual Global Meetings and Events Forecast from American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT).

At the heart of this shift, said the report, is AI, which has moved from an emerging technology to an essential tool for 2026, with 50% of industry professionals now integrating AI throughout event planning and execution.

Gerardo Tejado, senior vice president, professional services at Amex GBT, said, “We’re witnessing a transformative moment where AI is not just a tool, but a strategic partner that empowers meetings and events professionals to deliver more engaging, impactful and intelligent event experiences with measurable impact.” The meeting and events industry’s growing confidence, he said, “reflects our collective ability to embrace change and unlock new possibilities.”

AI is already helping organizations unlock creativity, streamline operations and elevate attendee experiences, according to the report. From generating content and themes to tracking engagement and sentiment, said the report, the technology can help meetings professionals optimize budgets and deliver measurable impact.

The most anticipated AI use cases for the year include:

• Connection: Event communications (35%), AI-powered matchmaking for attendees and sponsors (35%);
• Content: Creative theme generation (34%) and content creation (31%);
• Measurement: Engagement tracking (31%).

Meeting professionals have long strived to measure ROI, which is giving rise to “return on experience” (ROE) as a metric, according to the report. With much of the value of meetings and events tied to the impact they deliver, said the report, understanding ROE more accurately pinpoints how an event delivered against its strategic and creative objectives.

AI is essential for ROE, said the report, enabling event monitoring via badge scans and session check-ins, transforming behavioral data into actionable insights. Adoption of AI is trending up, with 28% of meeting professionals planning to use it for post-event evaluation in 2026.

To create truly memorable events, said the report, it’s crucial to encourage attendees to be active participants rather than spectators, meeting their demand for more engaging, hands-on experiences. Compared with five years ago, said the report, attendees today crave active engagement, with 42% wanting more interactive sessions such as workshops or demos. This was closely followed by the desire for more social activities and networking opportunities (40%).